Sometimes a good book really is all you need. They have the power to transform, take your mind off of troubles, whisk you to fantasy lands, and even if for a mere hour, allow you peek into the intimate details of someone else’s life. So we’re saluting the authors who keep us on the edge of our seats and leave us wanting more–sharing with you our favorite scribes who put pen to paper and uplift voices for the unheard.

Name: Pam Ward

Website: www.pamwardwriter.com

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
Pam Ward: When I was a kid, I read like a dope fiend every damn day. I read my dad’s political books, my brothers porn stash and when I got through my mom’s pile of worn dog-eared novels, I marched to the library and checked out some more. Back then, a library card felt like an American Express. I read “Cornbread, Earl and Me” for free and didn’t have to lay out one cent. Books were like crack and I was hooked at a real young age. Books were snap shots of life in all its beauty or hideous glory. I am a notorious eavesdropper and love speech in all its creative forms. I remember reading “PIMP,” by IceBerg Slim and being completely blown away and then marveling over “To Kill A Mockingbird’s,” cool southern drawl or the sweet prose of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raison in the Sun.”

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
Pam Ward: I’m very proud to be a female writer today. In fact, if I was a male, I’d have to be a cross-dresser because being a girl is so much damn fun! I mean look, it wasn’t that long ago that woman had to publish under male pseudonyms to make it. Louisa May Alcott used to be A.M. Barnard and Charlotte Bronte used to be Currer Bell. Hell, even J.K. Rowling of the “Harry Potter” series used initials because she said she didn’t think boys would want to read a book by someone named Joanne. But if all bets were off and I couldn’t be a writer, I’d be screaming my stories from the Transamerica Building downtown while a slideshow clicked across the wall. Film, documentaries, some form of multimedia expression.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
Pam Ward: You better have a full tank of gas and a scraper that can make it! Writing is not for the faint of heart for two reasons. One, you can not afford to sugar coat the truth and real truth can be cold and pitch-fork hard. Sometimes feelings get hurt or the subject matter is intense but a writer can not afford to look away. Two, a writer’s life sounds way more glamourous than it really is. You have to be diligent. Writing takes work and penning a novel can be grueling. Sitting for hours, editing, watching the sun rise and fall and knowing you have never seen the light of day can get to you sometimes, but when you get a character’s voice right and the novel’s truth is humming under your thumbs, it is downright nirvana.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
Pam Ward: By using the internet, you can create an immediate social presence without leaving your front door. It’s super easy to create blogs, websites, and radio shows on your own, right on your laptop. But, and I say this with a capitol “B” it takes an incredible amount of time and energy. You can get sucked in the web and all your time can vanish before you know it. Don’t sacrifice your artistic craft by building notoriety. A big ego trip and a bad book don’t mix.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
Pam Ward: BAD GIRLS BURN SLOW is deliciously wicked, cat and mouse story about crime, identity and the funeral business. It takes place during this real life child-sex scandal that happened in L.A ‘85. I became fascinated with the unleashed power children had during that period and how innocent people were literary tossed to the flame,” The story centers on a child villain and her fiendish mother Margie who ‘work the funeral circuit’ as a means for luring lusty older men. Everything you can sell off the human body is thrown in, filled with serial killers, cremations, wheelchair sex and a body rolled up in a rug. My neighbor did the makeup at Forest Lawn for eighteen years so maybe some of that rubbed off. Living right next to Rosedale, the second oldest cemetery in Los Angeles and home of the oldest crematory in town, was a great back drop. Finding wonderful facts, like LA Unified being built over City cemetery, LA’s oldest and now defunct burial ground, served as fuel and folly.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
Pam Ward: My mantra is to write for five minutes every day. That’s how I wrote my first novel, WANT SOME GET SOME. I just chipped at that bitch each day. People will tell you you have to write a certain number of pages a day to make it. But that’s the wrong way to approach art. Don’t think page count, think heart. Concentrate on the feelings you’re trying to convey instead of word count or amount of sheets and you may end up with something worth saying. Stretch. Read work out of your normal comfort zone. Right now I’m reading Moby Dick and Lil Wayne’s song lyrics! Be bold. Don’t take no for answer. Don’t end your dream because some fool slammed the door. Run your ass down the street and knock on the house next door! Victory, like other good things, may sting at first, baby, but you get over it and your success is well worth it.

Beyonce Starts ‘Fierce’ atop U.S. Album Chart
Beyonce has scored her third straight No. 1 debut on the pop album chart with the double-disc “I Am … Sasha Fierce.”The Music World/Columbia album shifted a whopping 482,000 copies in the United States during the week ended November 23, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The set, split between material credited to R&B star Beyonce and her new alter-ego, Sasha Fierce, has already spawned the hits “If I Were a Boy” and “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).” Beyonce’s 2003 solo debut, “Dangerously in Love,” started with 317,000, while 2006’s “B-Day” moved 541,000. (Continue Reading…)

Obama Doesn’t Worry about Threats Against Him
Soon-to-be president Barack Obama said he is not worried about his own security, despite a higher level of threats against him than any other president-elect in history. Since Obama’s election, law enforcement officials have seen potential threatening writings, racist Internet postings and other troubling activity popping up. But Obama said in an interview with Barbara Walters that he never thinks about his safety. “Part of it because I’ve got this pretty terrific crew of Secret Service guys that follow me everywhere I go, but also because I have a deep religious faith and faith in people that carries me through the day,” he said. “And my job is just to make sure I’m doing my job, and if I do, I can’t worry about that kind of stuff.” (Continue Reading…)

Nephew Investigated in Death of Kanye West’s Mom
A year after Kanye_West’s mother, Donda, 58, died while recovering from plastic surgery, PEOPLE has learned that California authorities have launched a probe into the possible role of Donda West’s nephew, Stephan Scoggins, 46. A registered nurse, Scoggins was supervising West’s post-surgery care with West’s assistant and a friend when, according to a source familiar with the situation, he left the house to attend a baby shower the day after West underwent breast reduction and liposuction last Nov. 10. West died that evening at a Los Angeles hospital. At the time, the death of the rapper’s mother was described by a family spokesman as “the result of complications from a cosmetic surgical procedure,” a statement that placed intense scrutiny on West’s surgeon, Dr. Jan Adams. (Continue Reading…)

deipnosophist \dyp-NOS-uh-fist\, noun

Everyone has their vices. Mine is vintage and knickknack shopping. When I’m back in Atlanta, I wake up at 7 am on Saturdays and go looking for different yard sales and thrift shops and see what they have. Some of my most prized possessions have been other people’s junk. I start imaging what the previous owner did with my find. It amazes me how some people really don’t understand the value of certain objects that they sell for a $1 at a yard sale. *Shrug* their loss is so my gain.

I collect many things. Hence why Larry of Proton calls me “Knickknack Queen”. I have a solid collection of stamps from over 50 countries dating back to the 1940’s, vintage watches, scarves, bronze figurines, luggage and I love love love love love trunks and boxes!!! In my apartment I have over 8 big ones and counting! My favorite has to be the one that my TV sits on, its one of those big red trunks that people used to travel with. This one belonged to one of the members of Proton mother from her college days! It has the original writing and everything!! I have always been fascinated by religious artwork, the colors, gold, craftsmanship and the gaudiness. I am fascinated by Cross’s and the different variations. And don’t let me start on the paintings!

So randomly on a sunny afternoon, I decide to take a midday trip to Madaba, 30 miles south of Amman, Jordan. It’s known as the “City of Mosaics” It’s best known for it’s famous 6th century Mosaic map of Jerusalem and the Holy Land. Madaba is built on top of millions upon millions of vivid colored stones by the Byzantines and Umayyads that have yet to be even revealed.

I remember going to the St George Church when I was in middle school, but clearly we were more concerned about the boys on the field trip, than appreciating the history that is right in our land. So a car ride through the desert and short-while later we were smack in the middle of this old town. I never realized how many people came from all over the world here. There is also Mount Nebo; it’s one of the most visited holy sites of Jordan. It’s better known as the place where Moses was buried. A Byzantine church was built there by the early Christians and during a 2001 visit to Jordan; the Late Pope John Paul II held a sermon at the church that was attended by 20,000 people!!!

I took a ton of pictures of the painting and mosaics that have been found. A lot of these masterpieces depict an abundance of flowers and plants in what is now mainly a dry region. Some of the mosaics and paintings in the church told stories of biblical sort and vivid scenes of mythological legends. I even had a video, but as I was walking out the cave, I hit my head on the door frame and dropped my camera and lost the footage… those door frames are going to be the end of me and my memory! People must have been 4″5 or something.

Supposedly, and I stress “supposedly” the original artwork on cloth of The Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus is located in St. George. It’s placed in a wooden box, where people over many years have dropped prayer cards, money and gold.

From the minute I walked into the church, lit a candle and said a quick prayer for myself and my loved ones, I could feel this amazing energy. I have a very vivid imagination, and it was almost like I could see sermons being held in the Greek Orthodox Church back in the 1300’s. Being inside this church gave me a sense of ease. That many prayers have been whispered heard and possibly even answered. That people past have walked in with problems of the world on their shoulders and the joys of the heavens. There have been tears and smiles shared, pain and joy, heartbreak and love displayed all in one room. That I am not alone and that I need to learn to trust my struggles more.

I’m sure some of you are like.. “Fadia, I thought you were Muslim”. It just shows that it doesn’t matter what faith you follow, believe in or what have you; you can have a deep appreciation for other religions and respect it just like you respect your own faith. I feel the same sense of calm walking into a synagogue, mosque or temple. We can all fight and argue about whose religion is best but in all reality, regardless of what faith you follow aren’t they all words of and from God?!

There is one GOD, and we all have different names for him:

Dios - Spanish
Dieu - French
Dio-Italian
Gott - German
Kami - Japanese
God - Afrikaans / Dutch
Nkos - Zulu
Jehova - multilingual
Allah - Arabic
Dumnezeu- Romanian
Dyw - Cornish
Dew - Breton
….and I am sure many many many more.

The prophet Mohammad said one thing:

“لَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِيَ دِينِ”.

Which simply translates to: You have your religion and I have mine.

Call me a Universalite [if there is such a word]. I believe in Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and the lifestyle and principals of Buddhist. On this trip I brought some books by OSHO and I am even learning about Atheism, I just happened to be born into the Muslim faith. I honestly believe that all religions are nothing but a continuation of one another.

As we all should be a continuation of one another and really embrace the true meaning of tolerance. Be it racial, religious, lifestyle, and everything in between.

Go Falcons!!
[Had to end this on a light note since it got heavy. Not that I really know much about football or if the Falcons are doing well!]

*chees’n*

look at more pics of Madaba here…

Related Post: ‘Cloud Hopping’ with Fadia Kader, Cloud Hopping with Fadia Kader: Entry #001, Cloud Hopping with Fadia Kader: Entry #002 — I Did Not Vote

Kanye Says His New Album is ‘Great Art’
Kanye West says he’s not concerned about whether his new album is a blockbuster, because he’s made “great art” — and he feels really good about it. West’s new CD, “808s & Heartbreak,” was released Monday. It’s a departure for the 31-year-old rapper because it mostly features him singing. West says he was ready to take a risk and he thinks it paid off. Says West: “You know people sometimes don’t understand great art when they first hear it, but I am very confident in it. Whether it sells as much as the last one, or way more, I feel like I am just successful in doing something I felt really good about.” (Continue Reading…)

Bob Johnson Sets Sights on New Urban Cable Network
Robert L. Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television, has asked the Federal Communications Commission to approve plans for a new “urban” television network that would cater to a multicultural audience interested in health, lifestyle, education and other issues, a spokeswoman for Johnson told Journal-isms on Tuesday. (Continue Reading…)

Vigil Marks 2nd Anniversary of Sean Bell Shooting
About 100 people gathered before dawn Tuesday for a candlelight vigil and prayer service on the second anniversary of the fatal police shooting of an unarmed man on his wedding day that sparked outrage in the black community. The Rev. Al Sharpton and Sean Bell’s fiancee, Nicole Paultre Bell, led the memorial on the street in Queens where the 23-year-old black man was killed outside a strip club on Nov. 25, 2006 after leaving his bachelor’s party. (Continue Reading…)

bedizen \bih-DY-zuhn\, transitive verb

Rogers Named White House Social Secretary
Maybe it won’t be Andrew Jackson’s inaugural celebration, when happy throngs of guests in muddy boots crowded the Executive Mansion, lured away only when the whiskey was moved to the White House lawn. But to hear the newly appointed White House social secretary tell it, the Obama White House might have an awfully egalitarian touch. “Wonderful picnics outside, tree decorating, inviting military families over,” Desirée Rogers, the White House social-secretary-in-waiting, said Monday in a telephone interview. “One of the things that is particularly important for this administration is that we continue along this vein of making it everyone’s America. We are inviting all of America and all of the world to share in that splendor.” Ms. Rogers, 49, was chosen Monday as the next White House social secretary, making her the first African-American woman to hold the position. (Continue Reading…)

President Bush Issues Pardon for Rapper John Forte
President George W. Bush has pardoned rapper John Forte, an affiliate of the Fugees, who has been serving prison time for smuggling drugs, sources told AllHipHop.com. Forte was one of 14 persons that Bush has pardoned or granted commuted prison sentences. This wave of White House pardons is Bush’s latest, as he has less than two months in his presidency. A pardon cannot be overruled. orte was arrested at Newark International Airport in 2000 and charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to distribute. Police caught him accepting a briefcase with about $1.4 million worth of liquid cocaine in it. (Continue Reading…)

Racism Remains ‘Alive and Well’ in U.S.
The day after Barack Obama was elected president, Kari Fulton heard a white colleague proclaim that racism in America is dead. She cringed, worrying it might be a sign of flagging interest in the fight against discrimination. “In reality, racism is still very much alive and well,” said Fulton, who graduated last year from Howard University, a historically black college in the nation’s capital. (Continue Reading…)

Sometimes a good book really is all you need. They have the power to transform, take your mind off of troubles, whisk you to fantasy lands, and even if for a mere hour, allow you peek into the intimate details of someone else’s life. So we’re saluting the authors who keep us on the edge of our seats and leave us wanting more–sharing with you our favorite scribes who put pen to paper and uplift voices for the unheard.

Name: Nicole Bailey-Williams
Website: www.nicolebailey-williams.com and www.myspace.com/lovechildsrevenge

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
NBW: I’ve always written. From the time I was a little girl and I used to sneak a flashlight under my covers so that I could continue to read after “lights out,” I’ve always recognized the power of the pen. I guess what inspires me is that when I write, I get to create. Sometimes, I create a perfect world or sometimes I create perfection amid chaos. Nonetheless, it’s my chance to make sense of the world with a pen. I find inspiration from life’s flaws and raw deals, so I seek to straighten those things out in print.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
NBW: Since I’ve been writing, I’ve been juggling a full-time teaching position at a New Jersey high school and a 9-year stint as a radio show host in addition to my familial duties. The question is, what will my life be like when I can solely focus on my writing. That will be bliss…but I’m sure that I’ll throw another ball into the act again. I’m thinking of opening a restaurant.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
NBW: A writer must possess the gift of reflection coupled with observation. That will help writers give voice to characters’ motivation and it also helps to make the story flow without force-feeding the storyline to readers.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
NBW: I’m such a techno-boob, but I definitely recognize the power of the Internet. I paid college application fees for one of my students to get my Myspace page up and running, and thank goodness I have a cousin who designed my webpage. I have been able to do some research on the Internet, and I am able to read some reviews if the feeling hits me, so I definitely recognize their importance.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
NBW: It’s about a vixen who’s out for vengeance. Media Queen Peach Harrison has been cheated out of her inheritance, and she feels like she has an ax to grind. Through her adventures and scandals, we learn that sometimes we need to count the blessings at hand instead of being bent on revenge. We also learn the power of forgiveness.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
NBW: I’ll tell you what I’m unable to do because I have a three-month-old and a four-year-old. I do recognize that it’s important, though. Simply, write everyday. It’s your craft, and just like singers sing and athletes practice, writers need to write.

coquette \koh-KET\, noun

Being the international music fanatics we are, we were recently introduced to Keisha White (Thanks Chichi!) and all we can say is she hasn’t left our rotation ever since. This British R&B singer is what’s next in music. Her voice is sultry, soothing and fresh. So far, Keisha has released two albums, “Seventeen” and “Out Of My Hands“. Her upcoming album “Changes” is due out very soon and we can not wait to get our hands on it.

For learn more about Keisha White please visit www.keishawhite.com and www.myspace.com/keishawhitemusic.

Newsweek Cover: What Michelle Means to Us
At a recent Sunday brunch after church, my “sista friends” and I sat on the patio of a Los Angeles restaurant gabbing about the election of Barack Obama. Sure, we were caught up in the history of the moment. Most of us never thought we’d see an African-American president. But as a group of six black women in our 30s and 40s, we were equally excited by who is coming along with Obama to the White House—his wife, Michelle, and their two young daughters. We all praised—OK, maybe even envied—Michelle’s double Ivy League pedigree, her style, her cool but friendly demeanor. And yet we’re all aware of how much we have riding on her. At 44, Michelle Obama will be the youngest First Lady since Jacqueline Kennedy. And many are expecting her to usher in a similarly glamorous era in Washington. (”Bamelot,” as some are already calling it.) But Michelle’s influence could go far beyond the superficial. When her husband raises his hand to take the oath of office, Michelle will become the world’s most visible African-American woman. The new First Lady will have the chance to knock down ugly stereotypes about black women and educate the world about American black culture more generally. (Continue Reading…)

Cadillac Records: Two Takes On an Icon
Back in the day, you weren’t anyone in the blues world unless you were signed to Chess Records, the label that made stars out of a generation of rough-and-tumble musicians, notably Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Willie Dixon and Howlin’ Wolf. So when I was at the recent Toronto Film Festival, I made a point of seeing “Who Do You Love,” which stars Alessandro Nivola and Jon Abrahams as Leonard and Phil Chess. The two immigrant entrepreneurs created Chess Records, the 1950s record label that popularized urban blues. Later, with the arrival of Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, Chess Records ushered in a brash form of rock ‘n’ roll that was adopted by the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and thousands of young, white rock artists. And what are the odds? There’s a second Chess film on its way. (Continue Reading…)

T-Pain Says It’s Time ‘For Everybody Else’ To Stop Using Auto-Tune
At the end of the “Can’t Believe It” remix, T-Pain says that Auto-Tune is almost up. What? Why would Pain, whose Thr33 Ringz debuts at #4 on next week’s Billboard albums sales chart, extinguish his signature sound now? “Not for me,” Pain clarified, “for everybody else.” The singer — who told DJ Skee in a separate interview that artists such as Ron Browz have used the Auto-Tune effect poorly — told MTV News that his biters need to pay up. Hey, if Diddy can collaborate with Pain and pay him for using the Auto-Tune, so can you other guys. (Continue Reading…)

Obama t-shirt found in a little shop in Damascus,Syria

Yes — I didn’t vote, but within good reason.

I am of Palestinian descent, Kuwaiti Born, but I hold a Jordanian Citizenship because of the whole Israeli Occupation. And No I couldn’t vote, because I’m not a U.S Citizen best believe if I could I so would have!!! But can I STRESS to you all how Happy, Excited, and Rejuvenated the rest of the world is that Obama is in office?!

My First full day here, I went to my nieces school for their “World Day Festival”, Where they had over 12 countries with informational booths, the National food, and the kids in each grade class doing the traditional Dances of each country.
For the US, Hawaii was the representative, I was so confused… HAWAII?!!?!? The 3rd graders did the hula dances, with the full get up and all.. When I asked the talent coordinator why Hawaii, she gave me this “Heffa, are you dumb look” and said in a very Jordanian accent,

“Obama is from Hawaii!”

Word?!

And when the announcer came on, and announced Hawaii, the kids were chanting Obama’s name.

*Chills*

Even my nephew called his mom from his field trip on the 4th when it was announced [since we are 8 hours ahead it was daytime] and told her Obama won! Ummm he doesn’t even really speak English like that!

My friend here in Amman, had a election sleepover/ party and gathered all of our friends at her house and stayed up till the morning to hear the announcement. She said that it was the prettiest day so far, with no clouds in the sky, the sun out, and the weather gorgeous. In her words…”It was like the heavens above were happy as well”

Illustration in the Alrai newspaper

As for news coverage: you pick up any newspaper in Jordan and if its anything related to the US, it’s filled with Obama everything! Every illustration is of Obama, pictures of Obama, what does Obama mean to not just the States, but also the World!

It’s very interesting watching the news here. Mind you, I watch CNN, Al-Jazerah and BBC, but there are no reports of the racial divide that the US is going through. I was speaking to my friend online the other night, and just telling him how happy people are here genuinely that he is the president elect. I asked him what the reaction was that way, and he said it was the same but there is definitely some racial tension in the air, that the media is hyping it all up as well… Maurice Garland sent me an article that gun sales are up after the election. People are genuinely scared?!?!!

I guess the US doesn’t want the outside world to know that there is racial tension. I mean in all reality, the US is the “land of dreams and opportunity”, how in the world could there be tension over such a progressive and historic moment, while the rest of the world is overjoyed, how could the US come off like its less than excited?
I always knew that we censor our media outlets from the US to the rest of the world… but to see it here, and to watch International CNN and how “politically correct” it is is frightening… no wonder people have this vision of “Good Ol’ United States of America”.

Well let me end this on a positive note :) I am in the process of getting my US Citizenship, its been a long process, and as much as I wish I could have been a citizen in time to practice my right to vote and be part of this “Historic moment” [can I say how over that word I am btw], I cant wait to get involved in 2012.

I really believe that our generation has never had great speakers that have touched us, motivated us, or gave us hope the way the likes of JFK, Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X have given past generations. Obama is that to us and many others. I hear a difference in my friends’ voices, in their concerns, in their aspirations. Really, there’s been a fire lit under our generations a**. I’m really excited to come back to the states and I hope that energy is still there!

On that note,

Salam

FK

Related Post: ‘Cloud Hopping’ with Fadia Kader, Cloud Hopping with Fadia Kader: Entry #001